Karamoja has been overtaken by modern Africa. The culture and way of life has been blasted to pieces by the introduction of automatic weapons, tight border regulations, and a general ignorance on the part of the rest of Uganda and most who come into contact with them. The Karamojong have been victims of military persecution and of the automatic weapons that flooded into their society after the defeat of Idi Amin’s army.

Any attempts on the part of Karamojong to relocate, and seek out a better life have only been met by ignorance, resistance and a general slamming in the face of every door and every opportunity. Most children you will find on the streets of big cities are Karamojong…children who the general public view as ignorant and stupid, worthless, and not deserving of anything in life. They are viewed as little more than animals, and are rarely given the chance to make a future for themselves.

The following information was taken from Feinstein International Center at Tufts University. Following discussions with UNICEF in 2006, a team from the University built on its ongoing work in the region and designed a project to gather detailed and specific information on livelihoods and human security of groups within Moroto District.

The Karamojong are a nomadic tribe from the northeastern part of Uganda whose livelihood depends on keeping cattle. Karamojoa is a 27,200 square kilometer area of semi-arid savannah, bush and mountains. By far the most important ecological feature of this region is its rainfall pattern. During many years, the rains are sparse, or fail altogether. Thus, drought and hunger is a recurrent feature of life in Karamoja. Competition for scarce resources, particularly water and pasture, and the high value placed on cattle have produced a culture of raiding and warfare within which men are noted for their bravery and their wealth.

In past generations, groups would move according to water and pasture conditions. Since the 1970s, regular moving patterns have been curtailed due to the increase of cross border security and internal raids. Insecurity brought even tighter borders and strained relationships among groups within and adjacent to Karamojoa.

Because of the nomadic type of existence and the reliance on cattle and crops, education has long been viewed by many Karamojong communities as unimportant and irrelevant. As a result of this fact, most people in Uganda and the world view the Karamojong as an uneducated and stupid group of people without taking into consideration the reasons why they are not educated.

Karamojoa receives very little attention by international donors, agencies, and organizations. International coverage usually depicts instability in Karamojoa due simply to cattle rustling among tribes and across borders. The Uganda media and politicians repeatedly stereotype the Karamojong people as primitive and backward. Instability in the region is dismissed as a “cultural problem” or characterized purely as criminal behavior. Little attention is given to the implications of this insecurity on the local population.

Armed violence and the deterioration of the traditional economy continue to transform the society and ecology of Karamojoa. With their cattle herds depleted or gone, and many of their traditional agricultural areas abandoned because of fear of armed raiders, poverty-stricken people turned to alternative ways of life. Some of them thought if they escaped to the bigger cities, they might be able to find a better life. They couldn’t have been more wrong. People from all over view this tribe as uneducated (which they might be) and stupid (which they ARE NOT). They view them as people who should just go away. People who should go back to where they came from. No one taking into account the reasons they left.

We have witnessed first hand the tragedy that is life for so many Karamojong children and adults. We refuse to ignore it and just hope that it goes away. We want to make a difference and I hope that if you’re reading this, you want to help make a difference too. We have spent much time with a number of different Karamojong people. We have spent time with older children who have been lucky enough to have been given a chance, and have seen how these people truly are. We have seen that when given a chance, they want to make a future for themselves (and for others too). These are the most selfless people We have ever met. They are willing to work hard, study hard, and do what it takes. The Karomojong that we have had the pleasure of knowing are some of the most driven, compassionate, caring, smart, and appreciative people anywhere. If the Karamojong people are in fact different, as so many would have us believe, then the only difference we can find is that they are better. We have known Karamojong children living on the streets or in the slums, wandering through life without love or self-respect- just waiting to repeat the cycle of poverty and neglect because no one can take the time to teach them a different way. We have met adult Karamojong people who want nothing more than to be able to provide for their families. Who would be spectacular parents if only given the proper tools to work with. We have been blessed to know this group of people. A people who even through the hardships and nightmare that is their life, find a way to be welcoming, loving, and forgiving. These are a people whose plight has stolen our hearts, and we can only hope it will speak to you as well.

“There is too much blood being spilled on the land. The rituals are not performed as they should be. The government approaches us and our children with violence-they do not know our lives. The insecurity is finishing the animals and the young men. Perhaps Akuju has left us for now to finish ourselves.”

–Quote from a Karamojong Elder